Antonio Cassano insists that joining Inter has always been his dream, while he expects to put on weight when he hangs up his boots.

Antonio Cassano insists that joining Inter has always been his dream, while he expects to put on weight when he hangs up his boots.

The Italian international joined the Nerazzurri in the final week of the transfer window after requesting a transfer away from city rivals Milan.

“I won a Scudetto with Milan, I had a fantastic relationship with my teammates and I still hear from assistant boss Mauro Tassotti every two or three days,” he told TV show Undici. “But Inter was my dream.

“I need to feel important and at the Pinetina everyone makes me feel that way, all the way up to the top, meaning the President.

“I feel that everyone at the club has faith in me. It’s true that money is important to me, but thank heavens I've already set a bit aside, so it’s certainly not the only thing that matters.”

Cassano has made a stunning start to his Nerazzurri career with four goals in his opening six League games.

“But I can still do better. How much so? I don’t want to say. I just know that I feel good, I'm turning in good performances and for me the important thing is to be happy.

“At the European Championship I was coming off almost six months of inactivity. Now I’ve been working at the Pinetina for two months and I feel good.”

Cassano will come up against his past on Sunday in the derby, a tie which will no longer feature Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva.

“The derby is a different game. You can’t predict a result and there is no favourite. We’ll go all out for it.

“Are Inter stronger? We'll see at the end of the season who has done better, but I play for Inter so it’s normal that I see the Nerazzurri as the better team.

“Milan? I think the team has suffered more from Thiago Silva’s exit than from Ibrahimovic's because the defender was a reassuring presence for the group, providing cover and counter-attacks. You expected Ibrahimovic to score goals, but Thiago was much more important to our team.”

The 30-year-old, who suffered a mini stroke last season, also joked about his life after football. “I’m still certain that when I finish playing I’m going to get very fat…”